Wednesday, 26 June 2013

CATCH THE BUZZ: Gov't sets aside $25 million for prostate cancer research + Camille Davis heads back to the stage in Patrick Brown's latest

ACTING OUT: She's back! After a lengthy self-imposed hiatus, during which she gave birth to her first child, actress Camille Davis is poised to make her eagerly awaited return to the boards this summer. Davis will be co-starring in Ladies of the Night, the latest work by prolific playwright Patrick Brown, opening at the Centrestage Theatre in New Kingston next month. What's the play about? "Anything that comes to your mind after hearing the name is probably exactly what it is," she tells her Facebook family. "This is gonna be a great one. A lot of eye candy for the gentleman." Ladies of the Night co-stars Sakina Deer, Sharee McDonald-Russell and Keisha Patterson.

LIFE-SAVING NEWS: Jamaica's health ministry has pledged some 25 million dollars to advance prostate cancer research and develop a study over the course of the next five years. Health minister Dr. Fenton Ferguson made the announcement as he addressed the 35th Annual General Meeting of the Jamaica Medical Foundation at the Knutsford Court Hotel recently. "For us, in Jamaica, there is no culture of research," Ferguson said. "It is always important for anything you do to be evidence-based, and it is to that extent that research becomes so very important in how we go forward." The minister pointed out, too, that the study is expected to go a far way in advancing treatment and preventative measures in Jamaica and, hopefully, the wider Caribbean. At present, Jamaica has one of the highest rates of prostate cancer diagnoses in the world, with over 150 men diagnosed each year.